Wednesday, December 26, 2012

The best Christmas gift I could have gotten from whatever gods may be came to me on Christmas Eve. I got a job offer, after just over five months of unemployment. I happily accepted.

Not everyone out there is so fortunate, and there but for the grace of God go I. On Saturday, December 29, federal emergency unemployment benefits will end for some 2.1 million Americans, including those in my state who have been jobless for over six months.

I'm certain that Republicans, being the smug types that they are, will try to somehow blame President Obama for this, since he refused to just bend over and spread them for Orange Julius & Co. to continue all the lovely tax bonanzas for the super-rich. Obama gave away plenty trying to strike a budget deal before Christmas, and Orange Julius instead tried to float his own ludicrous "Plan B," and had to sheepishly admit that he did not have sufficient control of his own caucus to get it passed. Obama said he would have vetoed it anyway.

In any case, emergency aid for the long-term unemployed isn't part of the "fiscal cliff" deal, and after last week it looks as though there won't be a deal anyway. There are a few days left, but I'm not holding my breath.

Orange Julius isn't going to miss any meals because of this, nor will any members of his caucus. None of them will face bankruptcy, perhaps even homelessness, because of failure to reach an agreement.

But many Americans will. If I hadn't had the "cavalry" arrive in the nick of time, I could very well have been among them. I'm now in my sixth month of unemployment, and I don't have my first day at work at my new job for a few more weeks.

Polls indicate that more Americans blame the Republicans for the "fiscal cliff" crisis than blame Obama. But it's ridiculous that anyone at all blames the latter. I suppose it's a testament to how much Fox News, Rush Lardbaugh, etc., have persuaded millions of Americans that shit tastes like Beluga caviar.

Here are a couple of links to websites that explain what is happening to benefits for the long-term unemployed. I don't suppose this will provoke rioting in U.S. streets, but if it doesn't, I can't imagine what it would take.

I wouldn't be too down on the U.S. voters for leaving the House of Representatives in GOP hands.After all, Democratic House candidates drew over 1 million more votes than GOP candidates.It's only because of GOP gerrymandering that the House remained in GOP hands.

Boner has proven himself to be the most impotent Speaker of the House in many decades/ He is a very weak drunkard who has no concept of what his post requires. It is a miracle the GOP still controls the House anyway: were it not for very questionable gerrymandering done since 2010, they would definitely and deservedly relinquished control of that branch. These Tea Party-infested Rreactionary epublicans are a tumor on our body politic, and must be removed altogether!

Glad to hear you're back at work. I wasted my 20's being underemployed, unemployed, and underpaid. I've started a millwrighting apprenticeship at 31, I'm 10 years older than the average first year apprentice. Hopefully I have 29.4 more good years left in me to maybe get a pension. Hope you make out well where you're starting Joe.

Boehner serves at the will of the tea party. He's their puppet. They give him no direction ( since they have none ), and after he acts whether with principle or without, if they wish, they pull the rug out from under him, forcing his public retreat.The tea-party is a bunch of kindergartners in an unsupervised fire drill. They have no leader because their issue is to destroy - leaders are builders.Were I Obama, I would ask boehner to step aside, in favor of cantor, ryan, rodgers or some other tea-partier to lead the discussion, since boehner has no traction with them. He doesn't speak for them, yet they selected him as their spokesman.

About 2.1 million Americans lost their emergency jobless benefits today, according to "top stories." The expectation is that this will be a repeat of summer 2010, when the jobless ended up getting several weeks of retroactive benefits after Congress finally struck a deal. But, that's several weeks with no money coming in.

Separated at birth ...

Followers

Check out Joe's new food and libations blog

Obama's Secret Army?

I fear that some right-wing rubber-room refugees may think I'm serious.

Inside Sarah Palin's Church?

No, not really. This was somewhere in Tennessee. But she used to belong to a Pentecostal church that, among other things, buys into speaking in unknown tongues and faith healing. And then, there's this thing about handling venomous serpents ...

Post of May 18, 2009

"I consider myself a reasonably tough person. But if you waterboarded me enough times, I would probably sign my house and car over to you and confess to the murders of Jonbenet Ramsey and the Lindbergh baby." -- MJ

About Me

As all my posts state, I am an underground writer living in Texas. I am doing political blogging under a nom de plume for various reasons. I was born in 1956 in a small Texas town; I now live in a medium-large city. I have been writing my entire adult life, and have been published, both mainstream and underground. In my teens I was actually a libertarian-type conservative. Meeting Young Republican types in college was crucial to my being cured of that once and for all. At one point in my 20s I was something of a Trotskyite, but eventually became a more moderate progressive.
Since I started this blog and affiliated with other blogs, my writing has appeared in the USA Today, CNN and Reuters online editions, in Buzzflash.com, Crooks and Liars, and a number of other popular sites. My invaluable mentors have been Marc McDonald at BeggarsCanBeChoosers.com, and Blue Girl of They Gave Us a Republic and other fine blogs.
In keeping with anonymity, this is all I should say.

See "Manifesto Joe's Great Moments in Conservative History, Chapter 1"

Favorite progressive movies

Mister Roberts -- see January 2009 post.

The Big Parade, The Crowd, Our Daily Bread, The Day the Earth Stood Still, Seven Days in May, Dr. Strangelove, The Grapes of Wrath, Silkwood, Salt of the Earth, Born on the Fourth of July, A Face in the Crowd, The Manchurian Candidate, Easy Rider, Chinatown, Reds, The Naked and the Dead.

Fear on Trial.

Open City, Seven Beauties, Swept Away, The Bicycle Thief, Grand Illusion, Fury, Inherit the Wind, Judgment at Nuremburg, Pressure Point, The President's Analyst, From Here to Eternity, The Bridge on the River Kwai, The Milagro Beanfield War, Native Son, Bob Roberts, There Will Be Blood.

Modern Times, The Great Dictator, Paths of Glory, Spartacus, Hombre, Cool Hand Luke, Pan's Labyrinth, Network, Cutter's Way, All Quiet on the Western Front, Twelve Angry Men, Matewan, Return of the Seacaucus Seven, American History X, Putney Swope, The Pawnbroker, In the Heat of the Night, Norma Rae, North Country.